The challenge for successful delivery of foreign DNA into cells in vitro, a key technique in cell and molecular biology with important biomedical implications, is to improve transfection efficiency while leaving the cell's architecture intact. Here we show that a variety of mammalian cells can be directly transfected with DNA without perturbing their structure by first creating a tiny, localized perforation in the membrane using ultrashort (femtosecond), high-intensity, near-infrared laser pulses. Not only does this superior optical technique give high transfection efficiency and cell survival, but it also allows simultaneous evaluation of the integration and expression of the introduced gene.